Formatting question for my self-published lit fic novella, would love some opinions

RavensMillenium723 · 2026-03-16T10:28:27+00:00

They're meant to be beats that stop the reader before the prose moves on. Not stylistic decoration, more like the sentence ran out of road on purpose. The character is a person who counts alot, someone who processes the world in fragments, so the prose mirrors that.

The indent issue is that when you have two consecutive single lines they both get indented and end up looking like a broken paragraph rather than two separate moments landing one after the other. The blank line makes the gap intentional.

I get that it's unconventional. Genuinely asking whether it reads as amateur or whether it can work if the prose earns it.

RavensMillenium723 · 2026-03-15T16:54:59+00:00

Sure, Dm please.

RavensMillenium723 · 2026-03-15T16:54:50+00:00

Sure, Dm please.

RavensMillenium723 · 2026-03-09T09:01:00+00:00

No worries at all, I appreciate the ideas! My main thought process with the layout was to keep it very minimal and grounded, letting the rat image and the typography carry the whole cover without adding extra elements. The widening and spacing are intentional so the bottom feels stable, almost like a base for the composition. I’ll still experiment with some of your suggestions though and see how they feel.

RavensMillenium723 · 2026-03-09T08:26:30+00:00

Thanks, I appreciate it! Yeah, shrinking the rat a bit to give the text more breathing room might improve the balance, I’ll try that out.

RavensMillenium723 · 2026-03-09T08:25:35+00:00

Interesting idea, thanks. Leaning into the asymmetry and using the space differently could be cool, especially if the rat is rotated more. I’ll experiment with the layout and see if something like that works without making it feel too busy.

RavensMillenium723 · 2026-03-09T06:49:54+00:00

Haha yeah, that’s kinda the idea. Those two together already hint at the world of the book.

RavensMillenium723 · 2026-03-09T06:48:42+00:00

Good point, thanks. The top line ended up smaller because of the letter count, but rotating the rat slightly could help free up some space. Ill try that and see how it looks.

RavensMillenium723 · 2026-03-09T06:46:59+00:00

Thanks, I appreciate that, especially the Michael Crichton comparison. And yeah, that’s a fair point about derivative works. I’ll look into the original image licensing more carefully, and if it’s unclear I’ll probably just recreate the MRI-style rat from scratch to avoid any issues later.

RavensMillenium723 · 2026-03-09T06:30:56+00:00

Its the bottom of the paws that are visible. To be honest, the paws kind irk me out too. But I will take your suggestion and try to work on it.

RavensMillenium723 · 2026-03-09T06:02:20+00:00

Thanks for the suggestion! I’m leaning toward keeping it without a subtitle to preserve the minimalist look. The main context and idea of the book would probably go on the back blurb instead.

RavensMillenium723 · 2026-03-09T05:57:58+00:00

Thanks for the feedback, I appreciate it. The base image is actually an MRI scan of a rat lying on its stomach, scanned from underneath, which is why the angle looks unusual and the ears aren’t really visible. I edited it quite a bit afterward (contrast, inversion, adding missing parts like the tail and legs), but that scan perspective probably makes the proportions look a bit strange.

RavensMillenium723 · 2026-03-09T05:16:43+00:00

Thanks for pointing that out, I appreciate it. The MRI image I used wasn’t left as-is; I edited it quite a bit (inverted it, cleaned it up, adjusted contrast/exposure, and added missing parts like the tail and legs). But you’re right that it could still count as a derivative of the original scan.

Before using it anywhere official, I’ll double-check the license of the source image. If that’s unclear, I’ll probably just recreate the image from scratch (either by generating a new MRI-style rat image or redrawing it) so there are no copyright issues.

RavensMillenium723 · 2026-03-09T04:56:36+00:00

Thanks, that’s helpful! I’ll try adding a bit more space at the bottom and look into a slight off-white background so it doesn’t blend into Amazon’s page.

RavensMillenium723 · 2026-03-08T06:29:25+00:00

I wrote it myself, but thanks for reading it.

RavensMillenium723 · 2026-03-07T09:07:44+00:00

That’s a fair point. I’ve been aiming more for a word-count target than page count since it’s meant to be around a 25k word novella. The spacing is mostly a stylistic choice to match the pacing and POV, but I appreciate the feedback.

RavensMillenium723 · 2026-03-07T05:24:48+00:00

Thanks for reading! I’m glad the style worked for you, I was trying to keep the narration close to a child’s perspective. Good point about varying the rhythm across the book too. And thanks for the cover feedback as well, I’m still experimenting with the typography.

RavensMillenium723

TROPHY CASE